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| The Ursinus offense will get lots of notes after they scored just three times in a five-overtime game. Centennial Conference photo |
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It's a good thing Ursinus opened up on Thursday night, because the Bears looked like they might need all the way until Saturday to get their first score of the season. In fact, it took more than 60 minutes, as the Bears battled Division II Millersville to a scoreless tie in regulation before finally surviving to win 17-9 in five overtimes.
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| Charles Johnson hauled in a 40-yard TD pass in the first quarter for Bethel to get the Royals on the board. Photo by Pat Coleman, D3sports.com |
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The Bears held Millersville to 9-for-27 passing and just 221 yards of total offense, managed just 259 themselves, only 184 yards in regulation. The teams were a combined 6-for-40 on third down conversions.
"I have been a player or coach most of my life," said an exhausted Ursinus head football coach Peter Gallagher afterwards. "Tonight was the gutsiest performance I have ever been involved with and I am so proud of our players and coaches."
Elsewhere in Pennsylvania, another Centennial Conference team opened and had a completely different type of night. Matt Magarity threw for 248 yards and four touchdowns, two of them in the final 18 minutes, and the Franklin & Marshall defense broke up a potential game-winning touchdown pass in the end zone with 22 seconds left as the Diplomats won at local rival Lebanon Valley 42-37. Taalib Gerald ran for 152 yards and a touchdown for the Diplomats.
Bethel was the only ranked team in action on Thursday night and the No. 20 Royals struggled through three quarters before breaking the game open with a couple of long fourth-quarter touchdowns to win at UW-Stout, 35-20. Andrew Dzurik made his debut at quarterback for Bethel and was 21-for-27 passing for 270 yards and four touchdowns. He threw a 40-yard touchdown to Charles Johnson in the first quarter, then his Bryce Marquardt for a 41-yard score early in the fourth and followed with a 46-yard bomb to Drew Neuville with 4:42 left in the game.
But Bethel suffered a big loss on the field and the postgame mood was a little somber. "We lost Landon Mathis, who's the best player on our team. That's a hard deal," Royals coach Steve Johnson said. Mathis, the undisputed leader of a young defense, went down with a season-ending injury.
Mike Clancy became the first Coast Guard player to rush for more than 100 yards since 2012 as the Bears played their first home night game in 20 years, defeating Anna Maria 34-6. Derek Victory led Coast Guard with 148 yards and a touchdown through the air. Lamar Carswell got his college football career off to a good start, rushing for 172 yards on 15 carries and scoring three touchdowns in his first collegiate game, leading Trine to a 38-14 win vs. Manchester.
The Air Raid is alive and well, but not particularly effective on opening night for Belhaven. Playing its first game as a provisional member of Division III, Hal Mumme's Belhaven offense chucked it 72 times and threw for 525 yards but rushed for minus-3 as Millsaps outscored the Blazers 34-7 in the second half of a 52-23 win. Andrew Warren ran for 113 yards and two scores for the Majors.